compost recipes?

Hello all.

I know I already have a post in this sub-forum, but this one is, I think, seperate enough to warrent a second post.

I was wondering what, if anything, you guys add to your compost - your "compost recipes".

I know that some people add a lot of newspaper. Some add grass clippings, others avoid it like the plauge. Some people will add a bit of fertiliser to the heap as it grows. And my best friend widdles on his heap once a month ( he makes lovely compost, but I absolutely refuse to eat anything from his vegatable patch!)

I was wondering what has worked well for you, what turned out to be a disaster, and what you think isn't worth bothering to add, as it seems to make no difference.

Any thoughts on (rough) ratio's as well greatfully recieved - now much, uf any, grass clippings would you add? How about woody/twiggy matter? How much house hold waste?

Thanks

Steve

 

use a mix of material. Too much of anything is bad. A little grass clippings is fine - say a 4" layer every so often. Stalky or woody material will slow the compost heap down, so chop it up fine.

Keep adding as often as possible - so that the heat of the heat can keep on going, using the new material as "food"

Adding manure and/or soil layers every so often provides heat/bugs (respectively)

Keep torrential rain out, but don't let the heap dry out.

I add pee to mine much more frequently. Its the best accelerator I know. It will be completely broken down by the composting process (although I suppose that high does of antibiotics and other medicine might remain??)

When I was young I used to use QR (QR = "Quick Result" I think) because some older gardening friends of my parents swore it was better than sliced bread ... and there are prodcts like Garrotta, but I don't bother with any Commercial accelerators any more

 

Steve,
Kirsten has just about provided you with THE definitve answer.

The only comments I can add are -

Urine is sterile, (urea is 46% nitrogen!) and doesn't contain any nasties, though female urine may contain hormones from the pill. If you are worried about in it compost just think about what the birdies and nasty pussy cats are depositing on your garden!

I have a comfrey bed and use most of it to produce liquid feed but also add the leaves and stalks to the compost heap where they help act as an accelerator as well as adding nutrients.

If you want a really fast working compost production line get some worms employed on it. We've two 'Dalek' bins that work on worm power and they produce compost about six times faster than the big main heap.

 

>> I have a comfrey bed ...

That reminds me that Nettles are also good at adding heat to the pile. Probably other things too, so may be worth foraging for them and mixing in with your monster pile!

 

I hope my compost bin sorts itself out this summer.
I started it in August last year, it did start to break down but then stopped because I suppose the winter and cold weather.
It's a bit of a mess at the moment.
Nothing like compost, more like a pile of gardening rubbish.
I have a good mix in it , taken advise off here.
A lot of shreaded bushes and plants.
Kitchen waste, a little grass cutting, some paper and weeds.
I couldn't face emptying it as it is.
Just so long as I don't have to bag it up to get rid. Yuk :dh:
Heres hoping for warm weather that will maybe start the process off again.
I do want to make my own compost.

Is there any other way to kick start it so early in the year?

 

If its rough, and not at all compost like, I would mix it in with fresh material as it arrives. i.e. start a new heap and mix the old material in 50:50. You will have a new, full size heap, in half the time and it will have plenty of warm weather to rot down quickly and fully.

Alternatively if there is some finished compost in your heap you could sieve it to get the compost, and mix the stalky stuff in with the new material as per my Plan A

 

Thank you
I have started to put some more stuff on to it.
The kitchen waste , garden cuttings , weeds & dead stuff .
It does seem to have gone down but looking into the flap at the bottom it still looks far from composty.

 

I think you need to mix the Old and New, not just put the new on top. (because the old stalky stuff will need some green material to get the temperature up and help the bugs to grow)

 

Yuk !!!!!!
I just knew I would have to get into it.
This is the kind of gardening I hate.
Weeding
Pruning
Cutting the grass
Planting
Even cleaning out the pond
And mending fences
I'll do any of that.
But bug filled compost. s00k

I'm not sure I will be doing it again. :dh: :lollol:

 

The only things I do not put on my compost heap are weeds. Grass clippings all summer. I keep a colander in the sink for kitchen waste this includes paper bags. The shreddings from the paper shredder go there. Leaves in the autumn.Prunings go through the shredder and go on the heap. I layer every so often with FRESH cow manure from my bovine friends across the road.. Creates loads of heat as it rots. I have great black compost within two or three months. I gave up covering it as the cover kept blowing off. I found it made no difference anyway. Loads of heat without it. The worms are everywhere in their zillions. (Sorry Lynn:hehe

 

I have one of those black dome shaped ones, with a little flap at the bottom.
I thought you just put the stuff into the top waited a few months and it came out as compost at the bottom.
How Naive of me . :lollol:
Now unless a miracle happens I'm stuck with a pile of rubbish to get rid of. :dh:
Serves me right for trying to be clever. :o

 

Can you just lift the Dalek off the heap?

Then stand it along side, then whenever you have another "layer" of new material (6" or a foot) use a fork to just chuck a fork-full of the old material in on top. After a while the old heap will have all been used up, and will double the speed with which the new heap is created.

I don't think those doors at the bottom work - unless you are a brilliant compost maker in the first place, in which case you probably don't use a plastic Dalek in the first place!

 

I use veg peelings and tea bags and throw it all in. I dont think that i would want to wee in it though lol